Electric incinerator



United States Patent ELECTRIC INCINERATOR Kenneth F. Triggs, Huntington, Ind., assignor to The Majestic Company, Inc., Huntington, Ind., a corporation Application August 26, 1957, Serial No. 680,334

2 Claims. (Cl. 219-19) This invention relates generally to downdraft type incinerators, and in particular to an electric incinerator providing rapid ignition and burning of its charge.

In incinerators of the type referred to above, the conventional placement of the igniting element beneath the refuse charge and out of contact with the air entering the combustion chamber or casing, tends to result in smothering of the ignited charge and, consequently, slow burning of the charge.

The present invention eliminates this ditficulty by positioning an electric heating element, serving as an igniter, within a casing or combustion chamber so that at least a portion of the element is always exposed within the area where the incoming combustion air encounters the refuse charge.

The principal object of the present invention is, therefore, to provide an electric incinerator in which smothering of the ignited charge is eliminated.

A further object of'the present invention is to provide an electric incinerator characterized by rapid ignition and burning of the charge.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the accompanying drawings and the following de scription and claims:

Fig. 1 represents a side view, partly in section, of an incinerator embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the incinerator shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the incinerator with the access panel removed.

Referring to the drawings, the incinerator is shown as including an outer jacket, rectangular in configuration and formed of light gauge steel, having side walls and supporting base 11. A thermally insulated cap or cover 12 closes the upper end of the jacket, and a removable access door or panel 13 closes an access opening 14 positioned adjacent the bottom of the front side wall of the jacket.

An air inlet opening or slot 15 in the jacket side Wall is disposed at the upper face of the step cove, or inset portion adjacent the base of the jacket.

Supported within the jacket is a casing 16, generally tubular in configuration, and adapted to provide a combustion chamber accommodating the refuse or other material to be burned. The casing is sized so as to be spaced from the walls of the jacket and is supported in spaced relation to the base 11 so as to provide an air passage 25. The casing may be fabricated from relatively heavy gauge sheet steel, and has suspended therein an enclosure or basket 17 formed of refractory steel wire for holding the refuse charge away from the walls of the casing.

The cover for the jacket has a central opening therein which is closed by means of a loading door 18. A collar 19, having spaced perforations or openings 21 therein, is supported adjacent the loading door and extends within the casing. A perforated panel 22, formed of widely spaced wire mesh, is suspended from the top of the casing ice and spaced from the rear side wall of the casing. The panel supports one end of a grate 23, preferably of the dump or shaker type, which is additionally supported at the front side wall of the casing. Below the grate is an ash receiving bin 24 slidable through an opening in the lower front area of the casing side wall.

The rear side wall of the casing is suitably formed at 26 to provide an air passage 27 which communicates with an outlet duct 28. This duct extends through an opening in the casing and accommodates a fitting 29 which serves to mount a flue duct 31. The fitting is formed so as to provide for the flow of air past the duct 28 from the adjacent area between the jacket and casing and into the flue.

A mounting plate or header 32, bolted to the lower front face of the casing, supports an electric heating element 33. The heating element may be of the conventional sheathed type but is formed so as to extend along the inner face of the jacket side wall to a point adjacent the top thereof. Terminals 34 of the heater may be connected by suitable Wiring (not shown) to a manually operated control switch 36 mounted upon a control panel 37 which extends from the jacket cover adjacent its rear margin.

In operation, with the casing or combustion chamber charged with refuse, indicated at 38 in Fig. 1, and with the heating element energized, ignition of the charge will occur. The path of the air supporting the resulting combustion is indicated by arrows in Fig. 1. This combustion supporting air enters the opening 15, passes upwardly between the jacket and casing side walls, and enters the combustion chamber or casing through the openings 21. The products of combustion of the refuse leave the combustion chamber through the panel 22, pass upwardly through the passage 27 and reach the fiue through the duct 28. A portion of the air entering the opening 15 also travels through the passage 25 and proceeds upwardly through the dead air space between the rear side walls of the casing and the jacket. This air also enters the casing through the openings 21. However, to limit the draft which may be created through the charge, a portion of the air taking this path may bypass the combustion chamber and flow directly into the flue past the duct 28.

Operating under the conditions just described, it will be evident that the placement of the heating element within the casing, and its extension to a point adjacent the upper end of the casing, insures that a portion of the heating element is exposed in the area where the in coming combustion air encounters the charge. This placement of the heating element thereby eliminates smothering of the ignited charge and insures rapid ignition and burning thereof.

While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same is to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character, it being understood that only the preferred embodiment has been shown and described and that all changes and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims are also desired to be protected.

The invention claimed is:

1. A downdraft incinerator comprising an upstanding tubular casing, an open mesh basket within said casing and adapted to accommodate a refuse charge, a jacket enclosing said casing, a refuse receiving opening at the top of the casing, an air intake passage through the top of said casing providing communication between the interior of the casing and the interior of said jacket, a grate across the bottom of said casing, an air inlet opening in said jacket disposed at the base of the front face thereof, a flue communicating with both the interior of said casing and the space between said casing and jacket, said flue being positioned at one side of said basket and having its mouth adjacent the lower portion thereof to draw air from the lower portion of said basket, and an electric heating element for igniting the refuse disposed in said casing, said heating element being mounted at the lower front face of said casing and extending therein adjacent said basket and said casing side wall substantially the entire height of the casing, whereby a portion of said heating element extends above the refuse charge in said basket and into the area where incoming air meets said charge.

2. A downdraft incinerator comprising an upstanding tubular casing, an open mesh basket within said casing and adapted to accommodate a refuse charge, a jacket enclosing said casing, a refuse receiving opening at the top of the casing, an air intake passage through the top of said casing providing communication between the interior of the casing and the interior of said jacket, a grate across the bottom of said casing, an air inlet opening in said jacket disposed at the base of the front face thereof, a flue communicating with the interior of said casing, said flue being positioned at one side of said basket and having its mouth adjacent the lower portion thereof to draw air from the lower portion of said basket, and an electric heating element for igniting the refuse disposed in said casing, said heating element being mounted to extend within said casing adjacent said basket and the casing side wall for substantially the entire height of the casing, whereby a portion of said heating element extends above the refuse charge in said basket and into the area Where incoming air rneets said charge.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,146,531 Craigie Feb. 7, 1939 2,488,405 Hebert Nov. 15, 1949 2,693,774 Knowles Nov. 9, 1954 2,804,030 Harner Aug. 27, 1957 

